Apparatus for cooling heated material



Feb. 23, 1943.

J. B. GAFFNEY 2,312,034

APPARATUS FOR COOLING HEATED MATERIAL Filed April 4, 1941 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 A dll Feb. 23, 1943. 1 B GAFFNEY ,2,312Q034 APPARATUS FOR COOLING HEATED MATERIAL i Filed April 4, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 23, 1943 J. B. GAFFNEY APPARATUS FOR COOLING HEATED MATERIAL -Filed. April 4, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 o o o o 2F10 P .o l l 9 l oeeooooooooor Swap/Wto@ M Ms M`/LN; www5 Patented Feb. 23, 1943 Joseph B. Gainey, Hokendauqua, Pa., assig'nor to Fuller Company, Catasauqua, Pa.,

tion of Delaware Application April 4, 1941, Serial No. 386,829 8 Claims. (Cl. 34e-164) The invention relates to the cooling of materials occurring in a substantial range of particle size, and more particularly to the rapid cooling of materials continuously formed intov a moving bed, through which air, or other gas, is forced or drawn to extract heat therefrom. It has especially to do with the cooling of materials such as ores, lime, Portland cement clinker, or the like, when continuously discharged from furnaces, such as rotary kilns, for the rapid reduction of the temperature of the material, the recuperation of sensible heat, or both, or to complete the lcooling of suchmaterials discharged from a recuperator,

Heretofore, various methods and apparatus have been employed to cool such materials occurring in a substantial range of particle size for the purposes set forth, examples of such methods and apparatus for a. particular purpose being shown and described in the patents to Douglass,"Num bers 2,163,513 issued June 20, 1939, and 2,137,158 issued November 15, 1940. The eiciency of the prior method and apparatus is excellent when the material to be treated is of uniform particle size,

but it has been found, for example, in the cooling of cement clinker from rotary kilns, that the sizes of the clinker particles vary over a wide range. A number of factors have a decided eflect upon the formation of variously sized clinker, as, for example, the conditions under which the clinker is burned and the diiferent compositions of raw material used.

In the prior art, as exemplified in the patents to Douglass, the heated material enters the cooler where it is deposited upon a shelf at the upper end thereof, the material-accumulating upon the shelf until a pile has become of such height as to overcome the natural angle of repose yof the material. Thereafter, the material passes downwardly onto a downwardly inclined grate mechanism composed of alternate movable and stationary grates'. The distribution of the material, due to the sloping pile of material on the uppermost shelf, together with the constant reciprocation of the movable grates, causes the material to be continuously formed as a iiat bed, the particles of which are constantly agitated in their movement down the inclined support. It has been found that this constant agitation causes the bed of material to become graded with the smaller particles at the bottom and the larger particles at the top. The process of grading of the variously sized material begins immediately upon movement of the bed down the inclined support, and this gradation is substan- 55 tbecome cooled to the desired temperature.l

tially completed at a point removed a considerable distance from the discharge end of the support. Cooling air is passed upwardly through the bed of material during its travel down the inclined support, and due to the gradation of the bed, the smaller particles are thc iirst to be contacted by the air, and as the surface area of these particles is large in comparison to the quantity of heat which they contain, they soon By the time that the bed has become thoroughly graded, all of the smallersized particles inthe lower portion of the bed have become cooled to the desired point. However, the particles of larger sizes, having less surface area per unit volume and quantity oi' heat contained, require more time and air contact before they are properly conditioned. Accordingly, the grate is extended beyond the point where the smaller particles'are cooledto the required temperature and cooling airis continued to be forced through the bed until the uppermost layer of largest particles is cooled to the desired degree.

Under the operating conditions described, the cooling air necessary for cooling the larger particles must be forced through the dense lower portion of the bed after such portion has reached its desired temperature. Such operation causes the lower portion of the bed to be cooled below the desired point and also results in inelcient operation in the cooling of the larger particles, in that the abundance of ne particles in the bed greatly increases its resistance to the ow of cooling air. Since the air is ordinarily supplied under fan pressure, and fan eiciency rapidly decreases as the pressure necessary to overcome resistance rises, it will be realized that a substantial part of the power consumed in providing adequate air iiow is required because of the presence of the fine particles, especially after they have been segregated in the lower levels in the bed. Further losses in 4efficiency occur because the cooling air, before it reaches the larger particles,

is heated to some extent by passing through thel bed of ne material.

The present invention 1s, accordingly, directed to the provision of an apparatus by which heated material in a substantial range of particle size, may bev deprived of the heat contained therein, in

-an emcient manner at Ilow cost, and with the production of a uniform product. 1n the use of the new apparatus, the hot clinker is deposited upon a downwardly sloping support, having an angle less than the angle of repose of the material, where it is continuously formed into a flat bed. 'I'he bed is intermittently and regularly advanced down the support while being constantly agitated, such operation causing the bed to become graded, with the smaller particles at the bottom and the larger vparticles at the top. A flow o! cooling gases is maintained through the bed in a direction from the bottom toward the top thereof during its travel down the support, and the constant agitation causes the surfaces of all of the particles to be broughtin contact with the cooling medium. The smallest particles in the lower portion of the graded bed are contacted by the coolest gases and this, together with the fact that the surface area of the small particles is relatively great per unit volun-ie, causes the particles in the lower portion of the bed to be reduced rapidly to the desired temperature.

At the point in the downward travel over the' support where a substantial portion of the particles in the lower portion of the bed has been reduced in temperature to the desiredl point. those smaller particles are removed from the bed and the remainder thereof, comprising the relatively hot, coarser. particles continues to travel over the support, where such larger particles are directly contacted by the coolest air. Heat transfer, accordingly, is more rapid and efficient, because this portion of the bed has a much lower resistance to airflow, and consequently less air pressure is required.

It will be understood that the invention has a wide range of utility and may be employed in various combinationsV with other heat exchange apparatus. For example, it may be used to air quench Portland cement clinker discharged directly from a rotary kiln and to cool the clinker to a temperature satisfactory for grinding.V For such use, Vthe cooling air is divided into at least two and preferably more streams to be forced through succeeding sections of the clinker bed. One such stream, at least equal in quantity-to the requirement of the kiln for secondary combustion air, less that quantity induced around the nose ring, is forced through the hottest section of the bed; adjacent to the kiln, to return a maximum of heat to the kiln as pre-heated secondary air. This stream may also be divided and a controlled portion forced through the clinker as it enters the bed, to cause an abrupt freezing of the liquid phase. The rest of the air necessary to continue cooling to the desired point, for example, to a temperature satisfactory for grinding, is separately forced through the remainder of the bed, in the final or secondary cooling section of the cooler. As the quantity of air that may be returned to the kiln from the recuperating or primary section of the cooler, is usually insuiiicient to cool the iine clinker particles to the desired point, the fine particles are retained in the bed .the material thereafter entering the chamber.

for a limited time in the secondary cooling section and are then removed at an intermediate point in this section. Theremainder of the air necessary toV complete cooling is., accordingly, preferably divided and a quantity necessary to'reduce the temperature of the ilne particles is forced through the bed in the secondary section between the entrance to the latter and the point where the ilne particles are removed. The air necessary for completely cooling the coarse particles is forced through the remainder of the bed, and, as resistance to flow is decreased, it may be at lower pres- Sure.

It will also be understood that the invention may be used to complete the cooling of clinker,

or similar material, previously partially cooled in a separate heat recuperator.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the accompanying drawings illustrating one form of "apparatus suitable for the practice of the method. In the drawings- Figure 1 is a yvertical section through the appa- III having an inlet port I I and a discharge opening I2. Heated material entering the chamber through the inlet port Il accumulates upon a shelf i3, such material building up upon the shelf in a pile until a natural angle of repose is reached,

being distributed by the pile of material in such manner as to form a substantially'iiat bed on a downwardly inclined support Il. The slopeor pitch of the support is less than the angle of repose of the material to be treated and is prefer-` ably such that the larger particles will not roll downwardly freely.

The walls of the cooling chamber above the inclined support are constructed of ceramic or other heat-resisting material in orderto withstand the high temperatures of the air after it has passed through the heated material, and an exit opening I5 for the heatedair, or any part of it not used to support combustion in the furnace (not shown).r

is provided in the top wall.

The downwardly inclined support comprises a series of alternately arranged slightly vertically spaced, horizontal, fixed and movable Vgrates I6 and I'I at its upper end and a similar series of alternately arranged fixed and movable grates I6 and I'I at its lower end, the grates of the upper and lower series extending transversely of the support. A grizzly denoted generally at I8 and having spaced longitudinal bars 'I9 extending downwardly in the direction Aof the support is positioned intermediate the upper and lower series The downward slope oi' the of transverse grates. bars I9 is substantially the same as the supporting surface formed by the 4series of fixed and movable grates, and the lowermost grate of the upper series of transverse grates overlaps the` upper end portion of the grizzly bars I9 and the uppermost grate of the lower series of transverse grates is positioned immediately below the lowerV end portion of the grizzly bars I 9'. With this arrangement, a continuous support is formed for the material and the upper surface oi the sup-V.

port is substantially in a plane.

The xed and'movable transverse *gratesY are supported respectively on stationary and movable frames. The stationary frame comprises inclined channel members 20 which may be positioned in the side wallsk of the chamberl Il and extend the entire length of the support. The

fixed grates may be securely attached to the channels 20 in any desired manner, as by being welded to lugs 2| extending from the channel for this purpose. A floor 22 beneath theinclined support provides a base support for vertical channels 23 which in turn support the stationary side channels 20 to which they are securely attached;

The movable frame comprises a pair oi spaced inclined channel members 24 to which the movable transverse grates are attached as by uprights 25 which may be welded or otherwise secured to the grates and channels. The channels 24 are connected and braced by cross members 26 to form a rigid assembly. The movable frame is secured to and supported by axles 21 which in turn are supported by wheels (not shown)I to permit reciprocating longitudinal movement of the movable frame.

The reciprocating motion of the movable frame may be conveniently effected by one or more eccentrics oi the conventional type comprising eccentric rod 28 pivotally connected to axle 21, and movement imparted to the axle 21 is transmitted to the movable frame by a strap 23 rigidly connected to this frame by housing 30 and channel 3|. The rod 28 passes through a A slot in the rear wall 32 and terminates in the usual strap 33 surrounding eccentric disc 34 carried by shaft 35. A suitable variable speed motor 36 drives the shaft 35 at the desired speed through belt 31 and pulley 38. The thickness oi' the bed of material on the grates is readily controlled by the speed of the motor 36.

The adjacent transverse grates are spaced vertically a distance, usually 1A inch, to form horizontal air passageways, and each such grate contains rows of Itapered holes 39 near the forward and rear edges to form additional air passageways.

The longitudinal bars I9 of the grizzly as more clearly shown in Figures 2 and 3, are assembled as a unit upon rods 40 with spacers 4|. also carried by the rods, lying between adjacent bars to maintain them in proper relation. Clamping nuts 42 at the end of the rods permit the bars and spacers to be drawn together tight ly to insure the proper spacing under all conditions whereby a discharge of uniform particle size is obtained. To facilitate the discharge of the particles through the spaces between adjacent bars, the upper portion oi each bar is formed with a head 43, so that only the paru. ticles between adjacent heads are free to pass downwardly. U-bolts 44 secure the assembly of bars i9 to transverse I-beams 45 which are in turn secured to the channels 24 of the movable frame by bolts 46. It will thus be apparent that the assembly of longitudinal bars will rev ciprocate with the. movable transverse grates upon movement of the channels 24.

In orden that the material descending the support will not pile up upon the longitudinal bars of the grizzly. pusher blades 41 are posi tioned between adjacent bars i9, these blades having a downwardly sloping upper surface d@ of an angle substantially greater than that of the downward slope of the bar assembly. The yblades are supported at their base by channels 49 upon which they may be welded or otherwise secured, the channels 49 being in turn secured to the channels 20 of the stationary frame. Although the pusher blades have been shown positioned between the bars I9 in a staggered relation,

I0 is closed in an air tight manner by front and rear end walls 5t! and 5| respectively which extend downwardly from the bottom oi' the support and have their lower ends joined to theiloor 22 to complete the enclosure. To control the passage oi air through the bed at desired sections along its length, the enclosure below the support is divided into separate air chambers by partitions 52, b3 and 5d. Air is supplied to the several compartments by suitable means, such as 'one or more fans (not shown) connected to inlet; ports 55 positioned in the side wall of each compartment. Louver dampersl 58 in each inlet port control the passage of air therethrough and in this manner, the desired pressures may be maintained in the several compartments to effect eiiicient operation for either heat recuperation or fan operation or both. Attached to the front wall 5@ of the enclosure is a deflector 51 to receive the material discharged from the lowerend of the support and direct such material to i the discharge opening l2.

That portion of the inclined support beneath the grizzly is closed to the upward passage of air by a discharge hopper 58 having a' front wall which is formed by a portion of the division. wall 5d, and a rear ywall E59, the division wall 54 and the rear wall v5t? being attached to the rear edges of the stationary transverse grates adjacent the lower and upper ends of the longitudinal grizzly bars respectively. The hopper 58 receives the and directs -Vided n the loor 22.

it will be obvious 'that any number or i `arrangement of these blades may be used.

Upon each backward movement of the movable frame. to which the longitudinal bars I9 are at tached, the stationary blades will enter the bed of material to force the bed downward along the support at a uniform rate.

The space below the downwardly inclined support and between the side walls of the chamber charge opening i2.

material passing through the longitudinal bars it to the discharge opening 8l. Seals Si carried by the division walls and positioned in the openings through which .the channels 24 pass during the reciprocation of the movable frame, prevent substantial passage of air through these openings. In this manner the :flow of air from one compartment to the other or through the bed as it passes over the longitudinal bars isl eliminated. and the discharged material is permitted to pass downwardly Without obstruction and without causing a dusty condition. Part of the material being cooled will nd its way into the air chamber because of the reciprocation of the movable grates and to remove an accumulation o1 this material, gates 62 are pro- Upon opening of these gates, the air under pressure in the chamber will blow the accumulated material through the gates to a passageway b3 beneath the door 22 where a screw conveyor @il will move it forward together with the material from the hopper 58 to the dis- 'I'he .screw conveyor 64 is driven indirectly by the motor 36 through belt 65 and transmission t5, a transmission lever 41 controlling operation of the screw when such means are required.

The operation of the device is extremely simple and because of its simplicity is particularly adapted in its iield. The material entering the inlet opening ii continuously takes the form of a dat bed upon the upper Series of transverse grates and the constant reciprocation ofl the movable transverse grates causes the bed to travel uniformly down the incline. As the thickness of the bed which may be emciently treated will vary with materials having different characteristics, a reciprocating speed for the movable grates is selected which will proper bed for the material being treated. The

constant agitation of the particles of the bed and their tumbling from one grate to the next with the larger causes the bedto become graded maintain the Y particles at the top and the smaller particles at the bottom. As the linear speed of the grates is very small, very little noise or vibration takes place and the mechanism is subjected to only slight wear over long periods of operation.

The cooling air is forced into the air chambers below the inclined support and passes upwardly through the vertical and horizontal openings in the support and through the bed in a plurality of directed streams. The dispersion of the air through the `bed-in this manner together with the constant agitation and tumbling of the particles causes a large surface area of the material to be contacted by the air and rapid cooling takes place. The smaller particles, which are moved to the bottom of the bed by the action of the upper series of transverse grateahave a large surface area relative to the amount of heat contained therein, and since they are contacted by the coolest air, they are reduced in tempera- A ture by the time they reach the longitudinal bars of the grizzly I8. As the bed passes over the bars, the particles in the bottomv of the bed smaller in diameter than the distance between adjacent heads fall through the spaces between the bars and are directed to the discharge opening. As the bed continues its downward movement and reaches the lower series of transverse grates, the cooling air passing through that portion of the bed is permitted to come into direct contact with the larger particles of the material being treated and thus more eillciently extract the remaining heat therefrom. The louver dampers controlling the now of air to ftheseveral air compartments may be operated to increase or decrease the pressure in the individual compartments to cause -the passage of the-,desired quantity of air through the portions of the bed directly above the compartments, regardless of the resistance offered by the bed.

Although the apparatus shown includes only one discharge assembly intermediate the ends of the support, it will be obvious -that others could be spaced along the support to remove particles of various sizes as they reach the desired teinperature.

I claim: 1. In an apparatus for coolingheated material occurring in a substantial range of particle size, the combination of a cooling chamber having an entrance port for the heated material at one end and a discharge port at the other end, a downwardly inclined support in the chamber having its upper end adjacent the inlet to receive the material, the upper surface of the support serving `to support a substantially fiat bed'of particles, said support comprising a, plurality of series of spaced overlapping transverse grates, the grates lying in stepped relation with iixed grates alternating with movable grates, means for reciprocating the movable grates to cause the material in the bed to travel downwardly along the support, and means intermediate adjacent series oi' transverse grates having openings therein i'or removal of particles below a'predetermined size from the bottom of the bed. the upper surfaces of vthe series of transverse grates and oi' said last-named means being in substantially the same plane.

I 2. In an apparatus for cooling heated material occurring in a substantial range of particle size, the combination of a cooling chamber having an entrance port for the heated material at one end and a discharge port at the other end, cooling elements in the chamber comprising a plurality of series of slightly vertically spaced overlapping transverse grates, iixed grates alternating with movable grates, grizzly means disposed between adjacent series of transverse grates for removing material particles below a predetermined size, the upper surfaces of the sexies of transverse grates and the grizzly means being in substantially the same plane and constituting a continuous support for a bed of material, means for reciprocating the movable transverse grates rto agitate and advance the bed, means for advancing that portion of the bed remaining on the grizzly means, and means for introducing air under pressure into that portion of the chamber below the transverse grates, the air escaping betweenl the transverse grates and entering the bed in the direction of its travel. l

3. In an apparatus for cooling heated material occurring in a substantial range of particle size, the combination o! a cooling chamber having an entrance port for the heated material at one end and a discharge port at the other end, a downwardly inclined support in the chamber having its upper end adjacent the inlet to receive the material, the upper surface of the support serving to support a substantially nat bed 'oi' particles, said support comprising a plurality o! series of spaced overlapping transverse grates, ilxed grates alternating with movable grates, means for removing particles below a predetermined size from the bottom of the bed at points intermediate adjacent series of transverse grates comprising a grizzly having bars extending longitudinally oi' the support and spaced transversely a distance equal to the maximum diameter o! the particles to be removed, the upper surfaces oi.' the series of transverse -grates and the longitudinal bars being in substantially the same plane, means for reciprocating the movable transverse grates to vagitate 'and advance the bed, means for advancing that portion of the bed remaining on the longitudinal bars, and means for introducing air under pressure into that portion of the chamber below the transverse grates, the air escaping between the transverse grates and entering the bed in the direction of its travel.

4. In an apparatus for cooling heated material occurring in a substantial range oi' particle size, the combination of a cooling chamber having an entrance port for the heated material at one end and a discharge portat the other end, a downwardly inclined support in the chamber,r the upper surface of the support serving to support a substantially nat bed of material particles, said support comprising a series oi' spaced overlapping transverse grates at its upper end with ixed grates alternating with movable grates, a second series of spaced overlapping transverse grates at its lower end with fixed grates alternating with movable grates, means for removing particles below a predetermined size from'the bottom of the bed intermediate the upper and lower series of transverse grates, said means comprising a. grizzly having bars extending longitudinally of the support and connecting the' upper and lower series of transverse grates, the upper surfaces of the upper and lower series of transverse grates and the longitudinal bars being in substantially the same plane, said bars being spaced transversely a distance equal to the maximum diameter of the particles to be removed, means for reciprocatingthe mov'able transverse grates to agitato and advance the bed, means for advancing that portion of the bed remaining I' c I on the .longitudinal bars, and means for introducing air -inder pressure into that portion of the chamber below the transverse grates, the air escaping between the transverse grates and entering the bed in the direction of its travel.

5. In an apparatus for cooling heated material occurring in a substantial range of particle size, the combination of a cooling chamber having an entrance port for the heated material at one end and a discharge port at the other end, cooling elements constituting a downwardly inclined support for a bed of the material in the chamber, said cooling elements comprising a plurality of series of spaced overlapping transverse grates, fixed grates alternating with movable grates, means for removing particles below a predetermined size from the bottom of the bed at points intermediate adjacent series of transverse grates, said means comprising a grizzly assembly having a plurality of bars extending longitudinally of the support in the direction of movement of the bed and spaced transversely a distance equal to the maximum diameter of the particles to be removed, the upper surfaces of the series of transverse grates and longitudinal bars being in substantially the same plane to form a continuous support for the bed, pusher plates between adjacent longitudinal bars, means for reciprocating the movable transverse grates and longitudinal bars to agitata and advance the bed, and means for introducing air under pressure into that portion of the chamber below the transverse grates, the air escaping between the transverse grates and entering the bed in the direction of its travel.

6. In an apparatus for cooling heated material occurring in a substantial range of particle size, the combination of a cooling chamber having an entrance port for the heated material at one end and a discharge port at the other end, a downwardly inclined support in the chamber, the upper surface of which serves to support a substantially flat bed of particles, said support comprising a plurality of separated series of spaced overlapping transverse grates, fixed grates alternating with movable grates, a grizzly between adjacent series of transverse grates to remove particles below a predetermined size from the bottom of the bed as the -bed passes from one series to the next, said discharge means comprising a -plurality of movable bars extending longitudinally of the support and spaced a distance equal to the maximum diameter of the particles to be removed, the upper surfaces of the series of transverse grates and longitudinal bars being in substantially the same plane to form a continuous support for the bed of material, stationary pusher plates between adjacent longitudinal bars, means for reciprocating the movable transverse grates and longitudinal bars to agitate and advance the bed, means for introducing air under pressure into that portion of the chambe; below the transverse grates, the air escaping between the transverse grates and entering the bed in the direction of its travel, and a hopper beneath that lportion of the support constituting the grizzly for sealing the bed at this point against the upward ow of air and for directing the particles passing through the longitudinal bars to the discharge port.

7. In an apparatus for cooling heated material occurring in a substantial range of particle size, the combination of a cooling chamber having an entrance port for the heated material at one end and a discharge port at the other end, a

downwardly inclined support in the chamber having one end adjacent the inlet port to receive the material, the upper surface of winch serves to support a substantiallyflat bed of material 5 particles, said support comprising a plurality of series of slightly vertically spaced, horizontal overlapping transverse grates, fixed gratesalternating 'with movable grates, a grizzly between and connecting adjacent series of transverse grates and acting to remove particles below a predetermined size from the bottom of the bed as the bed passes from one series of grates to the next, said grizzly comprising a plurality of movable bars extending longitudinally of the support and spaced a distance equal to the diameter of the particles to -be removed, stationary pusher plates between adjacent longitudinal bars, the iixed transverse grates and pusher plates being secured to inclined side plates of a stationary frame. the movable transverse grates and longitudinal .bars being secured to and supported above a movable trame, means for reciprocating the movable frame to agitate the bed and advance it intermittently and regularly, means for introducing air under pressure into that portion of the chamber below the transverse grates, the air escaping between the transverse grates and entering the bed in the direction of its travel, and a hopper sealing the bed against passage of air 3g therethrough as it passes over the grizzly, said hopper directing the particles passing through the longitudinal bars to the discharge port.

8. In an apparatus for cooling material occurring in a substantial range of particle size, the combination of a cooling chamber having an entrance port ior the materiai at one end and a discharge port at the other end. a downwardly inclined support in the chamber :for receiving the material particles and having its upper end adjacent the inlet port, the surface of the support serving to support a substantially ilat bed of material particles, said support comprising a series of slightly vertically spaced, horizontal, overlapping transverse grates at its upper end with the series, a second series of transverse grates similar to those at the upper end positioned at the lower end of the support, a grizzly between and connecting the upper and lower series of transverse grates for removing particles below a predetermined size from the bottom of the bed as the bed passes :from the upper to the lower series, said grizzly comprising a plurality of movable bars extending longitudinally of the support and spaced a distance equal to the maximum diameter of the particles to be removed, stationary pusher plates between adjacent longitudinal bars, the ilxed transverse grates and pusher plates being secured to inclined side plates of a stationary frame, the movable transverse grates and longitudinal bars being secured to and supported above a movable frame, means for reciprocating the movable frame to agltate the bed and ad- Vance it intermittently and regularly, means for 65 introducing air under pressure into that portion of the chamber below the transverse grates, the air escaping between the transverse grates and entering the bed in the direction of its travel, and a hopper sealing the bed against passage of of air therethrough as it passes over the grizzly, said hopper directing the particles passing thrctiugh the longitudinal bars` to the discharge por JOSEPH B. GAFFNEY` nxed grates alternating with movable grates in 

